Abstract
The magnetic properties of ultrathin Fe films grown on Au(001) were studied at room temperature as a function of iron thickness in the range of two to three Fe monolayers (ML). The magneto-optic Kerr effect (MOKE) indicated that a spin reorientation from an in-plane direction to the film normal direction takes place when the iron thickness is reduced from 2.3 to 2.0 ML. Values of the effective magnetic anisotropy constants were determined from MOKE and superconducting quantum interference device measurements. The flow analysis of the effective anisotropy constants in anisotropy space revealed that the transition occurs via an intermediate state of canted magnetization.
- Received 9 June 2009
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.81.064421
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